


the corners and the lines

by uvoshals



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: M/M, Not Beta Read, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:49:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28805340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uvoshals/pseuds/uvoshals
Summary: You are here. You are still right here.Small oneshot about Nobunaga and Shalnark. Consider it a companion piece to my other work, "details."
Relationships: Now Nobu and Shal are each other's solace, Uvo and Shal had a relationship prior
Comments: 3
Kudos: 7





	the corners and the lines

“You were in my dream last night.”

Without even looking up, Nobunaga replied, “Oh yeah?”

“It was odd. I remember we were dancing. We danced as if it was our exultation, as if it was the end of the world.” Shalnark paused for a moment and laughed, “But I don’t believe in dream symbolism.”

Nobunaga stopped looking at his hands and exhaled. Shalnark, aware of his partner’s growing irritation, finished his thoughts with, “It was fun, though. Are you as good a dancer as your dream self?”

Nobunaga finally looked up at him. He knew that Shalnark was aware that he was becoming annoyed at the pointlessness of the conversation. In an attempt to cut their little chit-chat short, he answered, “Probably not, Shal. Never really had much of a reason to dance, and I imagine you haven’t either.”

It didn’t work.

“Ah, maybe so. Still, I wonder what we were so happy about? What could’ve been so wonderful? There was this weird sense of relief as we held each other. We were crying, but we were laughing, too.”

“Didn’t you just say you didn’t believe in symbolic dreams?” Nobunaga’s frown only deepened. 

“I don’t,” Shalnark’s smile faded slightly, “but it’s the first time in a long time I’ve actually dreamt at all. The first time you’ve been there too.”

A silence followed, one only punctuated by the sound of Shalnark sighing. They returned to what they were doing before: sitting beside each other on the couch without saying a word. It was nighttime, but neither were really sure what time it was. A lot of their off days were spent like this. Awkwardly living around the other, as if each other’s presence was supposed to help comfort them in some way. As if the act of just being there meant something at all. They weren’t sure; neither were really the best at sympathy. It was Uvogin and Nobunaga’s old place. Shalnark used to be around on occasion, but it really only worked when Uvo was there as their buffer. It was once a lively home to be in. Never a dull moment when the three of them spent time together. But now it just seemed colder, quieter. Darker.

Shalnark looked at Nobunaga. 

“Would you want to dance with me?”

Nobunaga’s face flushed red. He glared at his companion. “Where’s this coming from? Seriously, you don’t know when to stop sometimes.”

Shalnark laughed at his expression. It was his usual laugh for once—something Nobu hadn’t heard in a while. The thought crossed his mind briefly, how nice it was to hear. It was something that could arguably be a little creepy to see in the heat of battle, when he’s covered in blood and relishing in the death around him, but it was a solid laugh. Shalnark continued to cackle and threw his head back.

“Oh, come on. We’re alone. I can play the music off my phone. What else are we doing?”

Nobunaga’s eyes narrowed.

“Are you trying to get a rise outta me?”

“Maybe.”

Shalnark smirked and waited for a reply. When he didn’t get one immediately, he continued, “It’s not like we currently have a mission or anything. It’s just the two of us in this empty old house now.”

Nobunaga's anger all at once disappeared, and he stared at Shalnark instead. His expression turned solemn before looking away. He smiled sadly and muttered, “This is just an empty old house now, huh?”

Shalnark’s eyes widened. He sighed.

“I...you know I didn’t mean to—”

Shalnark’s apology was cut short by the sound of Nobunaga slapping his hands to his thighs and forcing himself off the couch. Shal looked up, unsure of what he was about to do or say. Nobunaga looked down at him before stretching out his hand.

“Let’s dance.”

Shalnark, still surprised, looked at Nobunaga for a moment longer. He blinked before grabbing Nobu’s hand and giving him a coy smile.

“How were we dancing in the dream?” Nobunaga asked as he intertwined his fingers with Shal’s. 

Shalnark elaborated, “It wasn’t like ballroom dancing or anything. It was more...celebratory, almost. Like we were dancing around something.” He pulled away from Nobunaga slightly to create a space between them, one wider than what had been on the couch. He still kept his grip on Nobu’s hands. 

“We gonna need more room?” Nobunaga asked half-jokingly. Shalnark only replied with a small chuckle. They started to spin around. 

On the third turn, Nobunaga piped up, “So this was all we did? Spun around like a couple of idiots?”

“Well, I remember we were outdoors. Under the stars, out in the open surrounded by what I think was a desert. It was dark. I couldn’t see very well, but it felt like we were dancing on dirt.”

They continued spinning.

“And we were laughing. And crying.”

Nobunaga’s grip tightened on the last word. He began to close the gap between them ever so slightly, praying Shalnark wouldn’t notice. Even if he did, Nobunaga figured he wouldn’t say anything. 

After a few turns, he pulled Shalnark noticeably closer, prompting his partner to smugly ask, “Are you trying to kiss me?”

Nobunaga dipped Shalnark low. “It’s called improvising.”

Shalnark only chuckled in response. He let himself fall into the dip, appreciating the feeling of Nobunaga’s hand now on the small of his back. It was a nice view from where he was. The room was still dark, barely illuminated by dim lights pooling in from outside, but he could still see the outline of Nobunaga. He could still see the shapes made from the faint light. He could make out the contours of Nobunaga’s tired face and of his own hands. He could feel the feathery edges of his hair prickle at a part of the couch. He could see the strands of his companion’s inky hair hang over him so gently. He could see the way Nobunaga’s eyes looked at him, so intensely but so softly all the same. 

Nobunaga slowly pulled him back up. Even in the darkness, Shalnark could see him so truly. 

Nobunaga cleared his throat slightly. “You never played any music, you know.” He still held on to Shalnark.

“That’s true. But I guess we didn’t need it.”

Unsure of where to go from there, Nobunaga stared at Shalnark for a few moments longer, still rocking him tenderly, before pulling him closer. Their bodies were pressed against each other, and they continued to spin lazily. 

Shalnark let his head rest on Nobunaga's shoulder. 

“I danced like this with Uvo once.”

Nobunaga breathed into Shalnark’s neck, “Part of me finds that hard to believe.”

“We were on a small heist together. Just the two of us. And afterwards we were in this old building outside the city together. One of the things he’d ended up grabbing was some old record player. It was cheesy but...he wanted to be romantic. Or maybe he thought it was funny. I wasn’t sure what his motives were. I even objected to the dancing at first.”

Shalnark’s breath shuddered slightly as he sighed. “He picked me up, and I was standing on his feet while he spun me around slowly. We just held each other for the longest time, even after the music stopped.”

Nobunaga’s eyes flickered wider as he felt Shalnark’s arms wrap themselves tightly around his neck. 

Shal eventually pulled himself away just enough so he could face Nobunaga again. 

“He was a better dancer, I think.” 

But he smiled, hoping Nobunaga could see it.

And he could.

**Author's Note:**

> back at it again with that nobushal stuff lets gooo i just wanted to get back into writing fics!
> 
> like i said, consider this a small companion piece to my first fic of them. its called details and i really recommend you read it for a little more context on this one! also i made a slight reference to a fic one of my friends wrote for me for my birthday years ago :')
> 
> anyways im really back into hxh again lately and these two will continue to be the death of me


End file.
